‘Tis the season for backyard entertaining and summer birthdays but who wants to slave away baking a cake? My friend and fashion stylist Sydne Summer, who loves to make things look pretty but, like most of us, doesn’t have a ton of time to spend in the kitchen, shares a genius idea for an ice cream cake that takes less than five minutes to make. Only assembly required.

Use mochi ice cream!

If you’re not yet familiar, mochi ice cream is a Japanese confection made from mochi (pounded sticky rice) and filled with ice cream.

Simply stack mochi ice cream on a cute plate, top with a candle (I love this flamingo candle) and voila!

Like a cupcake, each guest takes one and there’s no cutting — or cleanup — required. Genius, right? And aren’t the pastel colors so pretty? I used strawberry (my fave), green tea and vanilla. The mochi ice cream is from Trader Joe’s freezer section, costs about $3 for a package of 6, and are delicious.